Month: May 2015

I’ll be on tour for the next week so there will be no local ride info posted here. I will however be posting photos and stories of our bike ride from Pittsburgh to Washington DC beginning on Sunday night.

The Narragansett Bay Wheelmen’s Sunday ride will start in New Bedford this week. It’s a great chance for some of our local “challenge” riders to do a group ride. There is a place for everyone regardless of your level of riding.

The usual Saturday morning Cafe Ride is another easy ride to build up those “challenge” miles. Either or both are open to everyone.

Start: 10:00 am Regular Start
Start from the commuter parking on Mount Pleasant St in New Bedford, MA
Take Route I-195 East to Route 140 North, Get off at Kings Highway Exit, Turn right onto Kings Highway, then turn right again onto Mount Pleasant St, the parking lot will be on your right just after the entrance to Route 140 South
The GPS address of 1055 Mount Pleasant St is across the street from the parking lot

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Early Sunday morning I drive to Baltimore to pick up Brandon. We begin our tour on Monday in Pittsburgh and should arrive back in DC on the following Sunday or Monday. The weather looks dicey but we will make do.

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Since 2008, I have been talking about riding the C&O/GAP bike tour. We came close a couple of times but the logistics scared us off. Last year, I did the GAP with the Rails to Trails group but did not get to see the C&O. This year, everything came together and seven years after I set my sights on doing this ride, it’s finally going to happen. Back in the early days of bicycle touring, the nerves would usually kick in a week before the ride began. All the “what ifs”. With a few tours experience, it’s become a summer routine. I still get excited, but instead of thinking about all the things that could go wrong, I installed new handlebar tape on my touring bike.

Most of the stuff is laid out on the bed aligned with the pannier it will occupy. It’s under guard so I’m not worried about anything going missing. ( I have a small dog that likes to take things to different parts of the house).

The sentry. Midnight, the deaf cat.The thief

On tour, or reading about touring, there are always stories about people going out of their way to do something for the traveler. This tour however, things began before our first pedal stroke. A new friend from bikeforums.net got us a visitors resident parking pass in DC. When we get to Pittsburgh, we are staying at an airbnb host.

The weather has been hokey lately. Lots of windy days and lots of cool days. Two months ago if the temperature hit 55, we would all run out of the house in our underwear celebrating and dancing praise to the fire gods. Now when it’s only 55, we run into the house and turn on the heat. Today was in the 60’s so I went for a bike ride.

I chose a local bike club’s route that is pretty close to my house. A thirty mile loop that was arrowed by the Narragansett Bay Wheelmen titled, the Mattapoisett Ride. One of the highlights was when I came across the small town of Rochester MA, memorial day parade. It felt like I was in one of those movies that use small town extras. Cannonball Run with Burt Reynolds came to mind. It was really fun to be there and see how proud everyone was of their small town.

Memorial Day parade in Rochester, MABlackmore Pond in Wareham, MAHorses on the bike path.Canoeist on Blackmore Pond.

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Sisyphus was a king of Ephyra (now known as Corinth). He was punished for chronic deceitfulness by being compelled to roll an immense boulder up a hill, only to watch it roll back down, repeating this action forever.

I laid out a lot of gear for our tour next week. The table was full with camping and cooking gear. While organizing how I’m going to carry this stuff it was only natural to be thinking about tours past. Two years ago, I cooked oatmeal one morning. After the second day of riding, I sent all that stuff home. I did cook pasta one night after riding till 10PM trying to find a place to camp on our 2008 tour. We ended up setting up our tents at the edge of a parking lot along the Erie Canal. In short, since 2007, I have cooked two breakfasts and a dinner. I may have made coffee three or four times. I rode the GAP last year with a large group and know there are plenty of places to stop and eat or purchase good food. There is really no need to carry any cooking gear.

I am not going to be Sysyphus again this year, carrying all that cooking gear and having is clanging, making me look and sound like a bearded, crazy haired prospector walking a jackass in a 1968 spaghetti western. Tomorrow morning, I’m putting all that cooking gear back into storage.

Camping is another story. The gear is a little bulky but it fits on my rear rack nicely. There are campgrounds within walking distance of town centers. When there are others camping, hanging out and talking to each other over a beer and some snacks is so much better than sitting in a motel room watching some stupid sitcom or nutty political discussion on the boob tube. A soft bed and hot shower is a major advantage, but it’s not always the best choice. But there are certainly nights when it is the best choice. We will be mixing it up on this tour.

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I began following this blog in 2005 when he was keeping a journal of his cross country bike ride on a really good resource for bikers, crazyguyonabike. People from all over the world write about their bike adventures on the site, and it’s what got me into bike touring. Mike moved his journal to his own blog after having a fallout with the crazy guy host. Because it’s so easy to update, I continue to use crazyguyonabike for my bike tours.

In nine days, two of us will ride our bikes from Pittsburgh to Washington, DC. Accommodations will be a mix of camping, motels and B&B’s for our 8 day vacation on a bike. It’s all begins HERE

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If you ride a bike a lot, you know that you see so much more going on around you that passes by unnoticed if your in a car. Today was one of those days that a ride was in order, but a club ride, even one of the most popular local rides, just didn’t fit the bill.

There was no plan to go anywhere in particular. It was simply a beautiful day to ride a bike. The Phoenix Bike Path in Fairhaven, MA, takes us close to the New Bedford bridge that crosses the Acushnet river into the city. When I got to the span, the bridge was opened to boat traffic. I usually try to photograph the boat going through the opening. On this day I looked back to see a wonderful perspective of Fairhaven. Taking multiple shots playing with the zoom, aperture or shutter speed, gives a photographer a much better chance of getting that really good shot.

Fairhaven Center from the New Bedford bridge.

As I progressed into the city, I came across a food festival at Pier 3 and a dog festival at Buttonwood Park. From the park my ride took me on an easy spin to the south end where I stopped and chatted with some friends for a few minutes. At the end of the peninsula the long line at Clark’s Point Creamery was a big help in my resisting stopping for a dairy treat. Fort Rodman, Fort Taber, and East Beach were spectacular this day.

On the return crossing into Fairhaven on the bridge, the crew of Captain Leroy’s deep sea fishing trip, were filleting the days catch for the patrons who were loading up their bus for the long return ride to New Jersey. Once back in Fairhaven at Cushman Park, the local track club was in the middle of the Jr. events.

On the club ride, I may have gotten into a pace line, put my head down, and hammered for a couple of hours. Today was a mellow, fun ride that really hit the spot. The club rides are OK. The rides with no destination can be the best ride. Either way a bike is so much better than climbing into a car, blasting the radio and trying to beat yellow lights, and the other cars to the next light.

The few photos of today’s ride are set to music using Cyberlink Power Director 13.

For better quality, click the Vimeo link at the bottom right of the video

A Rail to Trail conversion from Lincoln to Woonsocket R.I. Six of us met up to ride this most awesome bikeway on a warm Friday morning.

The path follows the Blackstone River wherever possible, including on the tow paths of the historic Blackstone Canal. This highly scenic bikeway crosses the river many times, offering views of waterfalls, marshes and wildlife. Many old mills line the river too, evidence of the impact of the Industrial Revolution that earned the Blackstone the title of the “hardest-working river in America.”

Besides connecting 14 cities and towns in the Blackstone Heritage Corridor, the Greenway also links with the Blackstone River and the historic Blackstone Canal to form the Riverway, a corridor within the Corridor that will ultimately offer unique opportunities for residents and visitors alike to experience history, enjoy nature and engage in a variety of recreational activities. The Blackstone River Greenway will also connect to the already completed East Bay Bike Path, allowing users to continue to Bristol (and ultimately) Newport, RI.

Click the Vimeo link at the bottom left of the video for better quality.

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Meet at Lonsdale Drive-In for a 9 AM start. This flat paved rail to trail bikeway is 10 miles end to end. Cumberland to Woonsocket, RI. We will be doing an easy spin on this very picturesque path. Figure on 2-2 1/2 hrs of riding including the stops for photos and whatevah.